Don’t Quit Your Job To Chase Your Dreams… Until You’ve Read This

When I hear someone say those words I experience two feelings simultaneously.

1. Excitement. You can’t help but admire someone with that kind of passion. Exciting things often happen when people step out of their comfort zone and make space to go for their dreams!

2. Fear. What if their dreams are not realistic? How will they pay their bills? What impact might that decision have upon their family?

I never know what to say (and doubt there is any right thing as each situation is so different) but as someone who has quit jobs to chase dreams I thought I’d jot down a few thoughts.

Warning: my thoughts don’t all mount a single argument to either quit your job or stay in it. They’re some things to ponder when you’re making the decision.

1. Chase Your Dreams

First and foremost – chase your dream.

So many people stop chasing dreams. They end up looking back on missed opportunities with a sense of regret.

If you have a dream that won’t go away I think you owe it to yourself – and the world around you – to pursue it.

2. Be Responsible

Don’t chase your dreams in a way that leaves a trail of ruin behind you.

You owe it to yourself to chase your dream – but not at the expense of those around you.

Too many times have I seen men and women chase dreams in ways that put their family in the way of harm. I can recount a number of new bloggers who quit their jobs to become full time bloggers only to find that their family no longer had an income stream or health care. I’ve seen marriages break down and tragedy strike as a result of chasing dreams without a safety net or backup plan.

I think a lot of it comes back to your life stage and situation. When I started blogging, I was engaged to be married and we had no kids. I was still conservative with my decision-making and always had a part time job until I was sure blogging would pay our bills. If I were starting out again today, as a husband and father of 3 kids, I’d certainly take things even slower than I did.

I personally set up the move between employment and chasing my dreams as a something of a transition.

I started out studying part-time and working one main job and a number of part time jobs. As my dream of becoming a full-time blogger became more of a reality (i.e. as I began to earn more from my blogging) I was able to give up some of the part-time work.

This transition took over a year to complete and even then, at one point I got a part time job when my blogging income dipped for a time. I didn’t want to put my family in harm’s way so I always had a backup plan.

3. Take a Run Up…

My part-time work and study allowed me to transition in this way. I understand that this won’t always be possible for others. That doesn’t mean you have to quit your job immediately in order to follow your dreams.

There will almost always be a way to get your dream started – even while you work a job. Think about how you can get momentum up and to position yourself to make that eventual leap.

When I was in high school I used to compete as a long jumper in athletics. I wasn’t particularly good at it but had a great coach who showed me the basics. Interestingly, a lot of the work he did with me was focused not upon my jumping technique but my running and timing.

He told me that the key to a good jump was getting good momentum going in the run up, and then timing the jump and positioning to perfection.

Yes ‘jumping’ was something I needed to get right but without a good run up the eventual leap (and landing) was never going to be successful.

What can you do – in your current situation – to create momentum and to position yourself well for that time when you might actually make the leap into giving up employment to chase your dreams?

Answering this question might result in any number of things. It could lead you to part-time study. It could lead you to more intentional networking. It could lead you to working in the evenings on your project. It might lead you to creating a business plan. There are many small and achievable things that you can do today – even while working a job – that will put you in a better position to chase your dreams.

4. You May Never Need to Leave Your Job

I can think of many people who actively pursue their dreams while also working full-time and part-time in ‘real jobs’.

I know a full time accountant who has set up a charity and who supports orphanages in Africa by using his evenings and annual leave to travel and fundraise

I know a lawyer who is writing a novel in the evenings and on weekends

I know a teacher who started a craft business and makes her products in the evenings and sells them online and at markets on weekends

I know a woman who is a stay at home mother with 5 kids, who also cares for her mother who lives with Alzheimer’s, who has built a blog that generates the equivalent of a 3 day a week job

None of these people wants to give up their work but each is also living their dreams – fairly significant dreams at that.

The reality is that not everyone’s dream is of doing something that requires you to leave employment for it to be achieved. The hard reality is that some people’s dreams don’t end up coming true (at least not in the way that they imagine that they will).

Also, keep the possibility open in your mind that perhaps a part-time job will be enough to sustain you so that you can pursue your dreams. I know that this isn’t always feasible in every industry but I know a number of people who found part-time work and simplified their lifestyle in order to sustain themselves while they also worked on making their passions and dreams a reality.

5. A Job Can = A Dream Coming True

Similarly, I can think of many people whose dreams have come true through employment.

Sometimes I wonder if we put working for yourself on a pedestal as being the only truly fulfilling end result. Why is this?

Some people are just not wired to work for themselves and do their best work when working within a team of people under the leadership of someone else. Some people’s dreams fit very comfortably into that scenario.

I think of a friend of mine whose dream was to have an impact upon global poverty. She used to think that to follow that dream meant having to charity of her own. She tried that and quickly found that it wasn’t for her. This ‘failure’ could have been the end of her dream but she decided to find another way and ended up taking a job working for not for profit organisation. After 10 years of service in that organisation, she’s risen through the ranks and looks like becoming the next CEO of it. Her dream has come true – through her employment.

I know of another friend who took a similar path. He dreamed of starting a business that developed iPhone apps in a particular field but ended up joining another company who did that and working for someone else. Interestingly by taking that job he learned the skills he needed to also pursue some personal projects and ended up starting his own company on the side.

This is a path that many people would do well to consider. It may mean re-skilling and switching the fields in which you work in (and perhaps taking a pay cut to get in at the ground level) but could be a way of following your dream and keeping a steady stream of income.

6. Sometimes You Do Need to Jump

Sometimes, there comes a time to make the leap. It’s not for everyone and not something to rush a decision into but there comes a point where you’ve created enough momentum and you hit a ceiling of how much you can pursue your dreams while having a job.

Sometimes you also come to a point where you are just too comfortable with a ‘good life’ to do what it takes to create a ‘great life’. You need to put yourself into an uncomfortable position to make yourself fight for your dreams!

Make sure you wrestle with this decision a little. Listen to the ‘fear’ (fear is actually a good thing – it keeps us alive but also is often a precursor to doing something significant!) and involve others who care for you (and who you care for) in the decision and then make the move.

Sometimes you just need to jump and put yourself in a place where you’ve got no other option but to work your butt off to make your dream come true.

What would you add?

I’m sure I’m not the only one who hears people saying that they’re quitting jobs to chase dreams. What do you say to them?

And to those of you who’ve made the leap (or attempted it) – what do you wish people would have said to you?

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Comments

Great article. I spent way too long talking about my dreams versus actively working toward making them a reality. I lost my job a while ago and it was the best thing to ever happen to me (even though it was a horrible blow to me). I am lucky enough to live in a household currently where I could take a dip in pay in order to make my dreams a reality and have since started a business (very recently, almost no income) and have started a blog (very few posts and not online yet).

I spend every day pushing even harder toward my goals and have never felt more alive. It took a while to get going as I struggle constantly with procrastination and general irresponsibility but always thinking about the future I want for myself and my fiancé and the breakthroughs I’ve made have been the push I needed. It is very draining and I have had to learn many many things without any assistance whatsoever but it has all been worth it. The biggest fear I have is that it will never pan out but I know for sure that I will never be the guy that regrets never having tried

My friend, put your fears beneath your feet and press hard. If you are serious and attain the correct knowledge needed to pursue your ambition, it will happen. The promise is real, it is real, so real, just believe and it will come to pass.

I read the book buy the guy (can’t remember his name) who started the “Attitude” tshirts, and he also said if there is something you love but don’t want the hassle of setting up or running a business go work for a company in the same field.

I have never gotten wanna be authors who claim they need to quite their day job to write a novel. Hell, it doesn’t take that long, work at night, early mornings and weekends and it gets done in months, get it edited and then self publish it may take a year of part time work so you really don’t need to quit a job. How will you pay your bills and support your family in the meantime?

People really don’t bother thinking through things and just think they can jump right in to something without planning.

And just to clarify – “I know a woman who is a stay at home mother with 5 kids, who also cares for her mother who lives with Alzheimer’s, who has built a blog that generates the equivalent of a 3 day a week job”

This makes it sound like she never had a job to begin with, stay at home with kids and a mother makes me think she was on welfare and THEN the blog generated the work but what about the income? This wasn’t very well explained.

Great article Darren! You must have been listening in on the conversation my wife and I had today :-)

I have been struggling with this same dilemma for longer than I care to admit. Okay, I admit.. for almost two years. I still work full time but my plan is to build up my blogging income in order to write full time and walk away from the day job. I’m married, 3 kids, 5 dogs, 2 cats and 1 long suffering wife in my slipstream so this decision has to be made slowly, cautiously and with an eye on the bank balance at all times.

All my dreams came true because I dropped everything, did the internet thing full time and had poverty nipping at my heels. I developed a strong hunger to succeed because I had no other choice. Napoleon Hill talks about burning bridges, and I read stories about billionaires who had 5 cents, and lived on park benches, before reaching serious heights. Well I had 4 cents in my pocket at one time so maybe I will follow their lead!

Now, I always offer the advice to keep your day job. Why? Few people can stomach the hell of going broke, getting in fights with your friends and family and failing for many years. I am not super human but I do drive myself farther than most people…..and even keeping my eye on the goal and having faith did not prevent some nasty situations in my life as I refused to get a J-O-B to pay the bills, to take away from my internet time.

So, I travel the world for years on end because I was so damn hungry to get out of debt – to the tune of $70K ;) – and stopped the creditor lawsuits, and end the embarrassment of having little money, yet I offer the advice to hold on to your day job lol…..

Only you know. If you plan to make an astounding fortune, prepare for some kind of breakdown, as the rubber band effect usually bounces you to some pretty awesome stations in life. 4 years ago I had 4 cents; 10 minute ago I saw my first wild toucan in person over our cabina in Costa Rica. Surreal experience, and I know that 4 years would have been 10 if I got a job and devoted more time to paying bills….so really, it is your choice. I probably would not be petting tigers or feeding wild monkeys so soon, because when you hold a job, and pay bills, you sit in a nice comfy zone for extended periods, and little growth happens in your comfy zone ;)

Can you stomach heartache? Stress? I did not think I could, but I did, and here I am. Now, if you have a family, think of your children. On the flip side, if you kid lives through some struggle, maybe it will drive them to become a success early on in life. Who knows?

Can’t agree more. We’re chasing our dream (financially free, etc) while at the same time have to take care of our family and daily expenses. Thus the transitional period is important where you can see your initial steps in chasing your dream before you start putting more commitments into your dream

I met some people who failed in their efforts to chase their dream of even maintaining their business after quitting their job without any backup plan or clear strategies in mind. That is a crucial lesson.

I started pursuing my dreams part-time while employed full-time and I actually did that for 9 years. I started out as a music teacher, bought a teaching studio/retail store, and eventually moved into songwriting and blogging (an online business is a long-time dream of mine).

If it sounds like a lot, it was. I finally got to the point where something had to give. I didn’t want to scrap my business, which I had kept going all those years and I love, quitting playing music would have been like cutting off my nose to spite my face, and not to do the prep work to launch my blog (www.makecreativitypay.com) would have been hugely disappointing – and dumb. I could see the writing on the wall at my day job and knew that big changes were coming. I suspected my position was going away. So I worked like crazy and made my plans.

My job was finally eliminated as I expected, and now I have a huge running start to full self-employment. Still a lot of work to do, but I am so grateful for the effort I’ve put in and learning I’ve done up to now. I’m confident, and now that I have real time to devote to my businesses, it’s paying off.

I would encourage anyone to take the same approach. Make all your mistakes and figure out your strengths while you still have an income you can count on. You’ll know when you’re ready to make the leap, if ever.

I have always erred on the side of caution possibly because of being a migrant (twice over now) and having no backstop if stuff hits the fan. Regardless, I have seen many examples in my life of dream chasing at the expense of living.

I think I am now motivated by happiness and fulfilment aligning with all areas of my life. I am a mother of 5 and very involved in my community contributing my talents and skills. Everything I do in “chasing my dream” all lies inside of who I am and what I want for the world.

Inside a bigger than me vision is all the small things and steps I need to do consistently. Learning along the way keeps everything fresh ;) Not a dull moment in my household and no ‘same ol same ol’ here. It’s never quiet either which is very trying for an emerging artist haha

So my five cents worth is doing what makes me happy while working towards your dream whatever that may look like. I know its rather morbid but I figure that if I were to leave this earth before I achieved certain goals I would leave being happy of where I was at any moment in time. :)

I had a job I hated – hated. I always had a little photo business on the side but we never thought it would support us. The stress and ill health made me want to quit but my wife asked which stress would be worse, job stress or no job stress? Bottom line, I lost the job and my business took off. I put in maybe 20 hours a week and life is great. Stay out of debt and believe that everything always works out for the best if you always try to do the right thing.

I chose to work part-time, but not to follow my financial dreams. I’m working half time to support my family with myself, with my presence in their lives, and not just with the modest sum of money I bring home. I’m currently the sole breadwinner for my family (including my husband and daughter) and we live in Hawai’i. Few things are cheap here, but we are in a position that half-time teaching for me is possible.

I started a blog in anticipation of an income… in 5 years. I figured since it may take that long, I might as well get started as soon as I could. I already was sharing photos of my projects on Facebook, so it was a fairly natural transition for me into this intimidating blogging world. I’d like to eventually make an income with my blog (for now, I am donating what little proceeds I earn to charities), but I hope I am being realistic about this “in 5 years” blogging idea.

I do not plan on quitting my current half-time job, and the great thing is that I could go back to full-time for a new school year, if I ask, but my real dream is to be a stay at home mom and home school my daughter, even if it means living with very little income flow. I’ve seen too much of poverty and too much of the richness of others to know that the things we surround ourselves with are just things, and the security we think we have in money is just perceived. Happiness is a relative to expectation. Every time I try to explain my thinking to someone, they think I’m crazy. Am I? Or am I just reading a different page?

While blogging is great and a second income is even better, I still must have that job away from my blogs. I am in college getting a PhD in Management. I plan to use that degree to get a great job whether it be starting my own business or even teaching. I couldn’t imagine wasting all that learning time just to quit working and do blogs on a 100% full time basis. Good post, Darren!

I would tell them to stop talking about and start doing something. For too many people, it’s enough to just have it as a dream. They’re too scared to take the first step to making it come true either because of fear or failure or fear of success. Weird huh, but I know several friends who are like that. They tell me, “it’s so nice you’re living your dream.” Well, why don’t they start doing something for theirs?

Well, I would tell them to stop talking about it AND start doing something to achieve it. For too many people, it’s enough to just have it as a dream. They’re too scared to take the first step to making it come true, either because of fear of failure or fear of success. Weird huh, but I know several friends who are like that. They tell me, “it’s so nice you’re living your dream.” Well, why don’t they start doing something for theirs?

Im glad you posted this. You’re absolutely right, about putting “chasing your dreams” on a pedestal. When making the the decision to pursue your dreams, you need to be aware of the realities of life as well.

Life is not a movie where everything ends up well.

Decisions, and even risks, should be calculated. But once you calculate and determine your goals, then you should chase them with passion.

Really great article and just what I needed to read today!! I have made the choice to stay in my job (of course, I can’t not at his point) but I also hold a really good position within my company. I found that this position, while it was offering me good money wasn’t satisfying me and was actually holding me back from growing my own dream. So my decision was to downsize within the company in terms of position. This is allowing me energy and head space to grow my dream but still have a steady income!
Really hard decision and I totally agree with your comment that you need to wrestle the decision!

I realized my dream later in life so I am limited as to how far and fast I can ‘live it’. Responsibility to family comes first – always will. I like having the consistent income. Perhaps it holds me back. I may never know. Just keep in mind that sometimes people have to follow their dreams – one nap at a time. :)

Thank you for your insight Darren, I value your experience and you truly are the best at what you do. I also feel the same way, one should have a back up plan or let’s say a plan altogether when the decision to pursue their dream. When an individual has truly made up their mind they are going to chase their dream there is really nothing humanly possible that will stop them, regardless of financial situations. As long as your health is in tack you have an even chance to live the life you were born to. I myself have been an entrepreneur for many years and was living financially prosperous, but something happen? I had not set up a well dressed plan to operate upon which in other words is considered living dangerous. It turns out to be the greatest blessing I could have ever hoped for and this is why? I experience for years the challenge of providing services to the public and contributing my labor for a worthwhile cause. I felt good about myself. But I began to realize I was working too many hours for the compensation and not enough time practicing on how to better my practice of providing legal services. I began to realize the value of time and how to compensate your time. I was not married so being single you find yourself spending more revenues than a married man, I can go on and on with this area of point of view but for the sake of common sense you get the picture! Soon everything fell apart and I decided to start over again. It has not been hard for me for a couple of reasons. First I have experienced addressing intense problems for many years when finance became an issue and had learned how to liquidate assets for cash to keep operations flowing. I didn’t feel really good about this, but it is a part of doing business. What I had discovered, the truth of what I had discovered was that I was living way above my means in reference to what revenues I was taking in. So I decided to lower my standards of living to an environment whereas I would be able to sustain responsibility. I have had to lean on family members a bit, but I am fortunate to have a family that loves, respect and care for my welfare. Also a family who remembers I was the one who has always been there for my family; it gives me a warm feeling. I also have friends who have shown support within my downfall and support my efforts to profitability. Now; you may not have these attributes in your situation, but keep in mind, your dream has to live, it has to live! So don’t feel lowering your normal standards of living are out of the question. So many people really don’t get it, but that is in many cases all you need to do. If you are married, you must have a true partner willing to go through hell and back as many times as it take to prove her husbands dream will come to past. If you don’t have that, pray for it, daily, I mean every day. So many married couples break up for this reason and the dreamer continues on with their dream and eventually it will develop. Don’t be the companion who says I couldn’t take it anymore or I just couldn’t see it happening. What happens with this situation is the dreamer of the dream will push even harder for their victory; the dreamer becomes committed to any challenge presented to them. You should realize support from family, love ones, and real friends will practically guarantee your success if you are in fact true to your dream. When I started out having businesses I started out with business cards and cold calling and word of mouth. Now I have http://www.jon-serveprocess.com which is my website project and home of my process servers, court services site. I enjoy working on it. Watching it revolve into a prosperous online ecommerce vehicle. The most important thing I have learned through my journey of business is to put a plan in action. Build a plan and live the plan, believe the plan, trust the plan and most of all read holy every day, do everything that is right, and respect yourself, your neighbor. Be the peace maker in all things and offer only sound advice through knowledge and may God bless you.

I deal with this all the time, and there is no doubt that dream chasing is a double-edged sword. I love my work, but because of that I work all the time. I love the freedom of working from my own home, but I miss the social interaction of an office. I think the important thing is to at least make strides toward your dream, whatever it may be. That doesn’t have to mean quitting a job or drastically altering your life, but once you decide what would really make you happy, then you owe it to yourself to pursue that course in some manner. Let your small steps turn into bountiful strides, and don’t stop chasing, but know that life isn’t perfect, even when your dreams may come true…

I took said leap in 2004, and have never looked back. What I can remember from that time was a huge amount of fear. A lot of “what ifs?”. This I suspect is what prevents many people from chasing their dreams. Then when they reach that age, where it no longer matters, they look back with regret and think “why didn’t I do that?”. That’s why it is called a leap of faith. You have to take the leap and trust that the universe (and your own sense of survival) will ensure that your life remains in balance. Once I had made the leap what I received instantly was this huge surge of excitement, motivation and adrenalin. Suddenly you are jumping out of bed before dawn has even broken eager to tackle the day, and the world looks and tastes sweeter! For me it was quitting a job and running my own business. Nearly a decade on it was the best decision I made, but in the meantime other dreams and desires have pulled me in different directions, and what I have is no longer fulfilling on its own. So what I would add to those who think attaining their dream is the end of the chase — please be realistic. It may satiate you for the next 2, 5 or 10 years, but it probably won’t fulfil you forever, so bear that in mind before making the leap… then do it anyway!

Excellent post Darren. I started slowly earlier this year on the path to freedom from working a JOB. I’m doing the slow transition as I’ve got a wife and a mortgage.

I think another point that can be added is that we need to set deadlines to achieve these goals, especially if we’re working a full-time job and trying to build an internet business online part-time. Some of the skills I needed to learn were, being organized, goal setting, time management and working on productive tasks rather than just spinning my wheels.

Good one. I am a big believer in pursuing your dreams and keeping your job. It is sometimes very difficult to make a living at stuff you love. But dang it, just do it anyway!! You can have a job for money and still enjoy doing things that make you happy. You really can’t expect to earn money from the dream stuff all the time. Does that make sense… but don’t give up the dreams.

In my case I’m considering leaving my job at the moment. I’ve been writing all my life and been trying to combine it with my full time job but I’m quite exhausted by it. I don’t plan on writing as a full time occupation (so far I wouldn’t be able to live out of it) but I’m hoping to do some training and get a part-time job that would allow me to keep active in both my profession and my writing. I live by myself, I own my house and have no debts and I agree that if my personal circumstances were different I would be more cautious…Time cannot be bought no matter how much money and we don’t know how long we have to pursue our dreams (I had a bit of a health scare over a year ago and it made me reconsider things too and gave some matters an urgency I didn’t feel before).

This is a very well thought out article, based on the executive analysis.I completely agree with every word you said. Just want to add something from my experience: If you chase your dream, chase it even than, when everything looks falling apart, even than when nobody believes that you can make it! This inner belief, that you will succeed, is the only difference between you and those who have given up.
I have passed so hard time in last four years building up (again) my broke business, but I just keep up hard working day and night, and after four years, I can say, there is a light at the and of a tunnel.You see, my dream is to be good in business, to earn enough to provide family and to give a good education for my children. It is common dream but it is mine.

I left because remaining at my job for 10 years actually caused me to develop atrial fibrillation. I’m interviewing for other jobs, but my dream is in sight and I’ve been able to make a few bills. My afib has stopped and I don’t regret leaving. This is scary, but it’s worth it.

Thank you for such a wonderful article. After reading these tips, I want to let you all know that I quit my full day job to be a full time professional blogger and trust me guys, I faced some real stern challenges.

If you are thinking to quit your full day job and start up with blogging or any other startup, be ready to face some real challenges.

I have been a blogger for the pass seven years and have incurred a substantial amount of money so to speak by writing reviews to clients in reviewme, payperpost, socialspark, sponsoredreviews etc and making articles in triond, reviewstream to name a few but never left my land base work for two good reasons I am not yet ready and It’s better to have to pockets than one.

I’ve done it – quit my job to follow my dream – but I’ve always, always prioritised the dream, by working part time in other jobs for a long time. I’ve also changed direction several times, and the most important thing for me has been noticing how if something is going to happen, it will happen naturally. If the time is right, the doors will open and the road will be clear. If things aren’t flowing smoothly, then you’re still in the transition stage. Be patient, and enjoy the journey as much as the destination.

This is very true. Those who have a day job can keep their daytime employment, while working on their dreams of doing something entrepreneurially positive. Making the transition from employee to entrepreneur is a tough one. With patience, humility and persistence, anyone can persevere.

The key to any successful venture is planning. I’m working with a client that is thinking about leaving his architectural firm and starting his own. Considering the construction market and his age (55) it’s a pretty risky proposition.
The biggest challenge he faces isn’t his age or market, it’s the fact that he’s a ghost on the Internet. He barely has a LinkedIn profile and no other social media or a website. It’s going to be tough but it can be done. Just not overnight.
My advice to him is to work very hard for the next year or maybe longer. Not at his present job but at his new second job, building his online reputation. This may actually be a good thing. Anyone who is self-employed or runs their own business, knows it’s much easier to be an employee. This will give him time to decide if he really wants to be an entrepreneur.
I would give this same advice to anyone considering taking the leap. Get use to working 60 hours a week. If you’re passionate about what you do and are truly committed, the work will be very fulfilling. This is also a great litmus test for those with a spouse or significant other.

Excellent article Darren. I couldn’t agree more! I too hear similar things from others and have the same reactions arise. Simultaneously ‘good for you’ and ‘I hope you have a good plan and a financial backup.’ As one who took the leap to follow my dream back in 2005, I did build a successful business for a while, going from zero to $1m turnover in 3 years. But I also relied too heavily on credit cards for cash flow and my blind faith that i was going to achieve huge success meant I was not paying proper attention to the financial reality of my costs exceeding my income and the fact I was living beyond my means. That only leads to one thing – eventual financial ruin, losing my house, business and filing for bankruptcy. It seems I needed to learn my lessons the hard way, but I do things very differently these days and my life (and finances) are much healthier as a result. Based on that experience, I would always caution people with dreams to follow them – with a financial backup and encourage the transition approach you suggested. And yes, many dreams don’t need to become your own business so much as another job in the area of your passion, or even a hobby or part time job on the side. For those who choose to leap anyway, I would caution them to jump but be willing to accept the consequences of failure (much greater impact if Married/with a family). If you are willing to lose it all to go for it all, then be willing to realize you could also end up with nothing. While that is a painful and difficult experience to endure, I found that I came out of it a much better person – more fiscally responsible, more humble, more realistic, and more grounded. Life for me is better now overall, but my financial meltdown did have an adverse impact on others along the way. Go for your dreams, by all means, but remember they don’t have to (and likely won’t) happen overnight. If you approach this as an adventure with an open mind and a willingness to learn and grow (yes – personally, emotionally, even spiritually) along the way, it can be a rewarding and enlightening journey. Good luck!

Thanks Darren. This has been a very timely read for me. I’m actually on the verge of deciding whether to take the jump or not. Reading this article made me realize that I still need a few more preparations to do before actually taking the leap.